A fuel lid (fuel door) is hinged to a vehicle body, and when closed, conceals the fuel filler opening and conforms to the outer profile of the vehicle body. The fuel filler opening is normally closed by a fuel cap. The fuel lid may be locked in order to avoid the fuel lid from opening inadvertently.
For instance, in a certain type of fuel lid device, the fuel lid is automatically locked when closed, and a lever provided in the cockpit of the vehicle enables the driver to release the lock and pop open the fuel lid by pulling the lever. In addition to the types of fuel lid devices that can releasably lock the fuel lid, the lid devices that can be opened and closed by pushing the lid toward the vehicle body are also known. Such fuel lids are known to be convenient for motorists who use self-service gas stations. One such example is disclosed in Patent Document 1. The disclosed device is provided with a push lifter for opening and closing the fuel lid by alternately taking the retracted position and the extended position each time the fuel lid is pushed. Additionally, an electric motor is provided such that the motor shaft extends perpendicularly to the lengthwise direction of the push lifter. The motor shaft is coaxially provided with a screw which threads into a plunger coaxially disposed with the motor shaft so that the rotation of the electric motor causes the plunger to be moved in the axial direction away from the electric motor until the free end of the plunger is received in a lock hole of the fuel lid to lock the fuel lid. When the rotation of the motor is reversed, the plunger moves in the axial direction toward the motor until the free end of the plunger is disengaged from the lock hole of the fuel lid, and the lock of the fuel lid is released.